Adjustable safety razor

ABSTRACT

The specific disclosure provides an adjustable safety razor having structure for rotatably mounting a guard structure about an axis that is eccentrically positioned with respect to a skinengaging surface on the guard structure. Manually operable elements are also provided for selectively rotating the guard structure about the axis to adjust the skin-engaging surface with respect to at least one cutting edge on the razor.

United States Patent 1191 1111 3,909,942 Ciaffone Oct. 7, 1975 [54]ADJUSTABLE SAFETY RAZOR 2,655,413 10/1953 Russell 403/93 X Inventor: JoT C a e, gep conn- 3,8l6,9l6 6/1974 Kuhnl 30/63 X [73] Assignee:Warner-Lambert Company, Morris Primary ExaminerAl Lawrence Smith Plains,N.J Assistant Examiner-Gary L. Smith Attorney, Agent, or Firm-James F.Powers, Jr.; Albert [22] Filed. May 3, 1974 H Graddis [21] App]. No.:466,598

[57] ABSTRACT [52] US. Cl. 30/47; 30/57; 30/77 The specific disclosureProvides an adjustable Safety 51 Int. Cl? B26B 21/06; B26B 21/14 razorhaving structure for rotatably mounting a guard [58] Field of Sear h30/50, 54 60, 605 61 structure about an axis that is eccentricallypositioned 30/63, 71 77 57 47; 403/33 31 93 with respect to askin-engaging surface on the guard structure. Manually operable elementsare also pro- [56] Ref Cit d vided for selectively rotating the guardstructure about UNITED STATES PATENTS the axis to adjust theskin-engaging surface with re- 1,653,105 12/1927 King 30/61 x spect toat least one cumng edge on the razor 2,182,571 12/1939 Savary 1. 30/71 X2 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures 22 /8 20 /2 0\24 4 unlit/1 BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION" The present invention relates to safety razors of the type inwhich a guard-structure is manufally adjustable to vary the shavingparameters of the razor. The invention is particularly suitable forsafety razors of the type having at least one blade permanently bondedin a replaceable plastic cartridge, or of the disposable" type formed atleast in-part of plastic.

Safety razors having means for adjusting guard structure with respect toblade cutting edge(s) are I well known in the art. For example,U.S..Pat. No. 3,375,578 discloses an adjustable band razor cartridge,U.S. Pat. No. 3,358,368 provides an adjustable double edge razor andU.S. Pat. No. 3,203,093 shows an adjustable single edge razor. Movementof the guard structure acts to vary shaving parameters such as shave or,tangent angle, exposure and span. Shave angle is measured between themedianplane of a bladeand a plane extending from the cutting edge of theblade tangent to the skin-engaging surfaces in front of the blade.Exposure is the distance from the cutting edge to a plane tangent to theskin-engaging surfaces disposed in front of and behind the cutting edge.Span is the distance between the cutting edge and the skin-engagingsurface in front of the cutting edge.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is toprovide a relatively uncomplex means for adjusting a guard structurewith respect to blade cutting edge(s), such that manufacturing andassembly costs are minimized.

In accordance with the present invention there is provided an adjustablesafety razor comprising a blade seat member, at least one bladepositioned on the blade seat.

member, and a guard structure including a skinengaging forward surface.Means are provided for rotatably mounting said guard structure about anaxis parallel to at least one cutting edge on the blade seat member, andthe axis is eccentrically positioned with respect to the skin-engagingsurface. The razor also comprises manually operable means forselectively rotating said mounting means about the axis to adjust theskin-engaging surface with respect to the at least one cutting edge.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective viewof a twin blade cartridge embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 corresponds to the view of FIG. 2 with a portion of the cartridgeside broken away.

DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS The specific embodiment shown in theFigures is a replaceable twin blade cartridge 10 of the type disclosedin U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,783,510 and 3,785,051, and in pending U.S. Pat.application Ser. No. 433,030, filed Jan. 14, 1974, by F. A. Ferraro forRazor Blade Cartridge and assigned to the assignee of the presentapplication. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,783,510 and 3,785,051, and patentapplication Ser. No. 433,030, filed Jan. 14, 1974 are incorporatedherein by reference.

With reference to the Figures, the cartridge 10 includes a plastic capmember 12 and a plastic blade seat member 14. A pair of single cuttingedge blades 16, 18

vertically separated by a spacer member 20 are permanently bondedbetween the cap member 12 and the blade seat mem er 14. As shown in FIG.2, the cutting edges 22, 24 are tandemly arranged with respect to aguard structure 26. I i

The cap, member 12has two pairs .of downwardly extending posts 28, 29;30, 31. The posts 28-31 extend through a pair of slots 32 in the topblade 16, respective hol'es 34 inthe spacer member 20, a pair of slots36 in the "bottom'blade 18, and respective holes 38 in the blade seatmember ,14.'The lower ends of the posts 28-31 are deformed (not shown)to prevent removal of the posts through the blade seat holes 38 andthereby bond the components of the cartridge 10 together. The posts 28-31, the slots 32; 36 and the holes 34; 38 can be dimensioned and/orshaped. to provide an interference fit and the cartridge components canbe assembled as taught by patent application Ser. No. 433,030, filedJan. 14, 1 974.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cartridge 10 has a T-shaped channel 45 formed ona lower side of the blade seat member 14 for sliding engagement withtransverse supporting surfaces on a holder (not shown). A suitableholder for the cartridge 10, is shown in US. Pat. No. 3,783,510. U.S.Pat. Nos. 3,783,510 and 3,785,051 disclose systems suitable fordispensing a plurality of the cartridges 10.

The guard structure 26 has a cylindrically shaped mounting element 60,62 at each end thereof. The mounting elements 60, 62 are seated incylindrical holes 64, 66 formed at each side end of the cartridge 10.The holes 64, 66 are formed] by arcuate cut-outs 68, 70; 72, 74 in theblade seat member 14 and in the cap member 12 such that the guardstructure 26 is secured to the cartridge 10 when the posts 2831 aredeformed to bond the cap member 12 to the blade seat member 14.

The mounting elements 60, 62 define a rotational axis that is parallelto the blade cutting edges 22, 24, and spaced forwardly of a blade seatwall-51. The axis defined by the mounting elements 60, 62 iseccentrically positioned with respect to an at least generally arcuateskin-engaging surface 86 of the guard structure 26 such that manualturning of the mounting elements 60, 62 in the holes 64, 66 acts tochange the shaving parameters of the cartridge 10.

For example, the hole 66 has a protrusion in the upper cut-out 74 thatis selectively positionable in one of three notches or recesses 82formed in the mounting element 62 by turning the mounting element 62.The mounting element 62 has a finger-engagable member 84 to aid inturning the mounting element 62, and which can point to indica of ashaving parameter setting. Specifically, in the position shown in FIG.2, the finger-engagable member 84 points to H to indicate that theskin-engaging surface is in a high position as indicated by 86 withrespect to the cutting edges 22, 24. Rotation of the guard structure 26in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 2 moves the skinengaging surface to a medium position (M) as indicated by 88, and to alow position (L) as indicated by 90.

It is apparent that'the protusion 80 and the notches 82 can beeliminated, and the mounting elements 60, 62 can be alternativelyfrictionally seated in the seat holes 64, 66 to provide a full range ofshaving parameter settings within the rotational limits of the guardstructure 26. In this alternative embodiment stop means (not shown) canbe provided on the inner surfaces of one or both of seat members 41, 43for engaging the guard structure 26 to limit rotation thereof to apredetermined sector. Such stop means (not shown) can also be providedto limit the travel of the fingerengagable member 84 to a predeterminedsector.

It is apparent that the present invention is suitable for use ondisposable razors such as that disclosed in US. Pat. No. 3,703,765. Thepresent invention also contemplates adjustment of single and double edgerazors such as shown in US. Pat. Nos. 3,203,093 and 3,358,368,respectively.

What is claimed is:

1. An adjustable safety razor blade cartridge including means forreleasably engaging a holder, said cartridge comprising:

a. a plastic blade seat member including a pair of spaced forwardlyextending elements, each one of said blade seat elements having anarcuate recess therein,

b. at least one blade positioned on said blade seat member, said atleast one blade including a forwardly extending cutting edge,

c. a plastic cap member above said at least one blade and permanentlyconnected to said blade seat member to bond said at least one bladebetween said cap and blade seat members, said cap member including apair of spaced forwardly extending elements, each one of said capelements having an arcuatc recess therein, said cap elements being injuxtaposition with said blade seat elements, the arcuate recesses insaid cap elements and said blade seat elements form a pair of spacedholes on a transverse axis,

d. a transversely elongated guard structure having a skin-engagingsurface parallelly spaced forwardly of the cutting edge, said guardstructure including a pair of posts rotatably seated in said spacedholes, said transverse axis being eccentrically positioned with respectto said skin-engaging surface, and

e. manually operable means for selectively rotating said guard structureabout said axis to adjust said skin-engaging surface with respect to thecutting edge.

2. The cartridge of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of notchesformed in one of said holes, and a protrusion on one of said postsseated in one of said notches, whereby said guard structure is rotatableabout said axis to discrete positions.

1. An adjustable safety razor blade cartridge including means forreleasably engaging a holder, said cartridge comprising: a. a plasticblade seat member including a pair of spaced forwardly extendingelements, each one of said blade seat elements having an arcuate recesstherein, b. at least one blade positioned on said blade seat member,said at least one blade including a forwardly extending cutting edge, c.a plastic cap member above said at least one blade and permanentlyconnected to said blade seat member to bond said at least one bladebetween said cap and blade seat members, said cap member including apair of spaced forwardly extending elements, each one of said capelements having an arcuate recess therein, said cap elements being injuxtaposition with said blade seat elements, the arcuate recesses insaid cap elements and said blade seat elements form a pair of spacedholes on a transverse axis, d. a transversely elongated guard structurehaving a skinengaging surface parallelly spaced forwardly of the cuttingedge, said guard structure including a pair of posts rotatably seated insaid spaced holes, said transverse axis being eccentrically positionedwith respect to said skin-engaging surface, and e. manually operablemeans for selectively rotating said guard structure about said axis toadjust said skin-engaging surface with respect to the cutting edge. 2.The cartridge of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of notchesformed in one of said holes, and a protrusion on one of said postsseated in one of said notches, whereby said guard structure is rotatableabout said axis to discrete positions.